Which Way Do We Go?

       Often in life, we're presented with situations which confound us, make us question some of our foundational principles and understandings. Many people resort to a simple understanding of a complex situation. It's just so much easier to default to our base reactions and respond with base ideologies. If I've learned anything in my 32 years on this beautiful blue dot, it's that nothing is ever simple. Sure, we might be able to see simple patterns and what appear to be simple solutions, but how often have those patterns led to simple solutions which brutalize the beautifully complex reality we live in? Life is complex, convoluted. By definition itself, life seeks to create complexity out of simplicity, entropy pushing us further and further into a future of dazzling options yet scary complexity. It's easy to fear a future where the simple life we hope for shrinks in front of possibilities we can't quite fathom. Always remember this: at our core, hidden under all of our cultural norms, personal belief structures, and countless psychological and social pressure piled upon over years of struggle and success, we are human, beautifully and devastatingly human. All of the positive, negative, constructive, and destructive reside in us as individuals and societies. Don't let our increasingly complex world drive you to simple solutions, ones that hack through the process of understanding, giving us just shreds of true comprehension. Pause, reflect, and analyze. It's hard to find pieces of truth when the puzzle has been dumped haphazardly on the living room floor, scattered and trampled by the opinions of countless others. Science teaches us to be objective, seek truth no matter how difficult the search or hopeless it may seem at times. True understanding can find beauty in complexity. Take the time to think, don't just react. Humanity is an amazing thought, in part because of it's complexity. Don't reduce it to primitive monotony.

“Before you act, listen.
Before you react, think.
Before you spend, earn.
Before you criticize, wait.
Before you pray, forgive.
Before you quit, try.”

― William Arthur Ward